no one is doubting summer is here anymore because it's a scorcher out there. >> i just cool down with a rag. >> we don't like the heat, do we? >> no. >> yeah, 32 states are under heat advisory warnings today as a heat dome traps much of the country. already more than a dozen people have died this week from excessive temperatures. heat indices across the country are soaring, exceeding 130 degrees in some parts. meteorologist bill karins is here with the latest and the details for us. bill, we're just hoping it does not become a bigger killer. >> well, it is going to, there's no doubt about that. that's just the reality of it. heat the number one killer in the country. more than hurricanes, more than floods and more than lightning strikes. i want to show you an animation from our friends at our government service, the noaa weather service. the area of red is how we progressed over the last week. this goes back to the july 14th. the red coloring is where the t temperatures are 90 plus.

now it's change, now we're starting to include the great lakes and spread the heat to the east coast, including the carolinas and the ohio valley and by the end of the week, especially friday, all of the eastern seaboard. that is why right now there is 100 million people in this country, literally one out of three that is under a heat warning or heat advisory the next couple of days. here's the setup for right now. we're watching minneapolis leading the way in the northern plains with a heat index of 90. atlanta in the deep south has 93. you notice everywhere east of the rockies is heating up quickly today and that's where the worst of it will be. 100-degree temperatures possible today in chicago, minneapolis, and it's rare to go 100 in chicago. that doesn't happen that often. 101 in kansas city. this should be the naen19th daya row dallas will be 100 plus degrees. for our friends on the east coast, look at friday in d.c., 102. the thing that's different about areas like d.c. and new england is not everyone has air conditioning like the deep

south. you have to feel for people sitting in their homes with only fans in the days ahead. >> bill karins, still amazing information you're giving us. >> this is historical, this isn't normal. >> thank you very much. we'll be watching that right here. now to a vie leapt, mean spirited message from one south florida member of congress to another. alan west fires off a nasty e-mail to debbie wasserman schultz. the details and fallout coming up with "politics now." we're getting dangerously close to default while lawmakers are still arguing over how to raise the debt ceiling. they have 13 days to get this done. the president might call everyone back to the white house as early as today to talk about a new deal drawn up by the senate's so-called gang of six. >> it would not match perfectly with some of the approaches that we've taken, but i think that we're in the same playing field. and my hope is, that we can start gathering everybody over the next couple of days.

they tomorrow are prepared to start talking turkey and getting down to the hard business of crafting a plan that can move this forward. >> all right. nbc's kristen welker is live at the white house. kristen, the president is behind this deal just by saying, as we just heard, he's not fully behind everything. >> reporter: that's right, richard. as the president pointed out in his remarks yesterday, he feels as though this gang of six plan is really broadly consistent with his vision for getting a grand deal passed. it also at this point seems to have bipartisan support. about 43 senators making positive comments about this gang of six plan. 43 senators from both parties. so here's what the would do. it would decrease the federal deficit by about $4 trillion over the next decade. it could also call for an overhaul of social security and medicare and it would call for rewriting the tax code, so some people might see their taxes decrease. but overall the aim is to generate about a trillion

dollars in new tax revenue. that's what the deal would do. here's the problem with it. according to some lawmakers, this plan is really just an outline right now so there's just not enough time to get it written up and passed into legislation as the vehicle that would increase the debt ceiling. here's what we might see. we might see aspects of this gang of six plan make their way into a final deal to increase the debt ceiling. as you know, senator mitch mcconnell just last week introduced a plan that would allow the president to increase the debt limit in three increments through 2012, so we might see some of this gang of six plan make its way into the mcconnell plan as the path forward to increase the debt ceiling, we'll have to see, richard. >> good to see bipartisan support for an idea there at least. kristen welker, thank you. a rock us and rowdy session of parliament the day after media mogul rupert murdoch faced tough questions about the phone hacking scandal. this time it was prime minister's david cameron's turn to face the heat.

he tried to deflect criticism over his hiring of andy coulson, one of ten arrested in the probe so far. >> of course i regret and i am extremely sorry about the fewer owe it has caused. with 20/20 hindsight and all that has followed, i would not have offered him the job and i expect that he wouldn't have taken it. >> it's not about hindsight, mr. speaker. it's not about whether mr. coulson lied to him. it's about all the warnings that the prime minister ignored. he was warned and he preferred to ignore the warnings. >> i'm joined by richard wolffe and michael gordon and former spokesman for attorney general janet reno during the clinton years. richard, we'll start with you. as you watch what happened this morning, how did prime minister cameron do today? was anything left there that was damaging you thought? >> yes. well, look, he did a pretty good job of sounding contrite and

expressing regret as you just heard. but there are two big things. most damaging of all, he was pressed several times on whether he had had any conversations with all of his various contacts and friends at rupert murdoch's company in the u.k. about a $12 billion attempt to buy out the reminder of bskyb, the big broadcaster over there. this was a deal that the british government has quasi-judicial authority to approve or deny. all he could say is he had no inappropriate conversations. he kept using that phrase. frankly, it didn't sound like the members of parliament really bought that line. the second thing, a really explosive claim, that someone in the senior government, a senior government official had been hacked and bugged while andy coulson was there. these kinds of allegations are -- they just keep cropping up every day and it doesn't look like this kind of statement or investigations are going to end any time soon. >> yeah, we could be early in the game at the moment.

michael, i want to play some sound from yesterday's testimony, what we heard there in parliament. take a listen to this first. >> i don't know. i am now aware of that. i was not aware at the time. i didn't know him. i never heard of him. >> so michael, the question is is it acceptable that rupert murdoch was saying he didn't know about many of the shady dealings at the "news of the world" many times saying i don't know simply. >> it really strains credibility that he said that so often. it really wasn't sufficient. it was shocking, actually, that he didn't take more responsibility for what happened. >> he's the ceo as well as the chairman. >> right. he's the head of the company. the buck stops with him. frankly, it's page 1 of the crisis playbook to take responsibility for the actions of your company. even if he didn't know it, he should have taken responsibility. >> you know joel klein who's on the murdoch defense team or is representing the murdochs. >> i haven't spoken to joel since he's got involved in the investigation, but i will say he

is a brilliant choice to lead the internal investigation. he's tough and smart and will get to the bottom of it. the trick is, he has got to get the truth out and get it out quickly, because the longer it takes, the less they'll be in control of the story. >> richard, now, when we take a look at the response, at least from the markets themselves, yesterday as the murdochs started to answer the questions, the stock rose by something like 4%. it ended today in that same range. are we saying that the markets are basically saying it's okay, everything has made it past its nadir? >> well, 4% is not huge given where the slide has been but the market was clearly reassured that there seemed to be a plan to deal with this. because one thing that news corporation has been doing is changing its position almost on a daily basis. shutting a newspaper, getting rid of one executive, saying they're going to defend another. they keep drawing these lines and then retreating from them. but of course yesterday's comments as extensive as they were is maybe reassuring on the

surface as they were leaves open this whole trail for people to go back and say, wait a second, you said you didn't know anything but here's an e-mail that suggests that you did. so i think there are certain sort of traps laid ahead that may well spook the markets given there's a question of succession about rupert murdoch which is still unresolved. >> there's also the issue of taking responsibility. yesterday here, michael, we were listening to rupert murdoch and how he answered certain questions. listen to this first. >> mr. murdoch, do you accept that ultimately you are responsible for this whole fiasco? >> no. >> you are not responsible? >> no. >> who is responsible? >> the people that i trusted to run it and then maybe the people they trusted. >> does he not sit at the table where the buck stops? >> absolutely he does. and you have to realize, we're only at the third or fourth inning of this whole scandal. if he didn't tell the truth yesterday, that's going to affect him and his leadership at the company and affect the company as a whole.

and also, the police are still investigating, parliament is still investigating. there's a lot more we're going to learn about what happens. >> michael, richard, thank you very much. there will be more on this story no doubt. appreciate both of your time. you probably heard that the money-losing u.s. post office is trying to stop mail delivery on saturdays but now the postmaster general is predicting that rising costs and less mail may force the post office to cut back mail delivery to three days a week. however, he adds that would not be for another 15 years. i love that my daughter's part fish.

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things are getting nasty in the house as evidenced by this floor speech by debbie wasserman schultz. >> incredulously the gentleman from florida who represents thousands of medicare beneficiaries, as do i, is

supportive of the plan that would increase costs for medicare bshs, unbelievable for a member from south florida. >> she was talking about congressman alan west who fired off this e-mail saying, quote, you want a personal fight, i am happy to oblige. you are the most vile, unprofessional and despicable member of the u.s. house of representatives. if you have something to say to me, stop being a coward and say it to my face. otherwise, shut the heck up. you have proven repeatedly that you are not a lady. therefore, shall not be afforded due respect from me, end quote. that's representative allen west's words. now congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz will join andrea mitchell today at 1:00 p.m. eastern to address the west issue as well as the debt controversy that is ongoing. another moment from the house floor, massachusetts congressman breaking out this poster board of a cruise ship showing republicans throwing everyone overboard except for a monopoly man with his money bags. >> republicans are pushing

grandma and middle class families overboard. >> and congressman peter king announcing he'll hold a third hearing on islamic radicalization in america. the chairman of the house homeland security committee says this will focus terrorist recruitment and training of muslim americans. critics argue these hearings are racially motivated. we've got some new poll numbers that are out today and they do not bode well for either the president or congress. the latest nbc news/wall street journal poll shows for the first time since december president obama's poll numbers are upside down with 47% of americans approving of his performance and 48% disapproving. congress is in worse shape. both parties have about twice as many detractors as supporters. joining me now, msnbc contributor and pulitzer prize-winning author and publisher, karen hunter. thanks for being with me today. >> good morning. >> in the poll we found that most americans want some sort of

compromise on this debt ceiling deal, yet we also learned according to the poll that for those who support tea party supported candidates, they want them to stand their ground. how are they going to get to an agreement. should they continue to listen to constituents. >> i think the tea party should remember that they took an oath and that oath is to serve the american people, not just one segment and not just their personal interest. we as americans must remember that the tea party makes up roughly 10%, 10%. i mean we're talking about a vast minority of folks who are now swaying what we're going to be doing as a country? something is really off with that. really off. >> you're saying where's the silent majority? >> hello. i'm looking at this and i'm feeling like that movie that's coming to fruition and we're living in it. this makes no sense. all the acrimony and nastiness undermines our ability to come together as a nation and undermines our ability to get it together so we can fight what we're going through which we're all in, all of us.

>> we'll have lots of time to talk about that. i want to move to 2012. also that poll, as you know, has interesting numbers. mitt romney at the top, 30%. michele bachmann getting 16% in this poll. when you look at it, though, poor showing by pawlenty as we move farther down in the numbers. it's very difficult for him right now. what do you think is happening? >> he's boring. he's boring, he doesn't have a lot of charisma and unfortunately we're in this kind of reality tv show generation where you've got to bring some pop and you've got to have some -- you know, some energy. >> and bachman is still on the first screen as you saw there. >> and she's rising actually. and romney is staying stat, which is not good for the republicans. unfortunately huntsman, who i think comes with a great background, again his announcement was very blah. he hasn't made any noise. he's been very milk toast. i think for many americans, they're not hearing him. >> not doing well in the latest numbers. >> no. >> president obama. i want to show you these numbers too. basically when you take a look at the margin of error, 42-39,

we're seeing some of the lowest numbers for the president at the moment. dissatisfaction with what's happening now in washington, d.c. regarding the debt ceiling, what do you think? >> i think it's dissatisfaction across the board. i think the republican message has been very clear and very strong whereas president obama until very recently, last week, hasn't been driving home the things that he's done. he's done a lot of compromising and been a little wishy-washy and until he bucks up and gets strong and says hey, you know how i feel about polls, they're for strippers, but if we're going by the polls, it doesn't matter. president obama, step it up, they don't like you, so do what you need to do to make america strong again. >> and for political analysts like yourself, that's what polls are. >> thanks, richard. now we're going to bring in democratic congressman from california loretta sanchez to give us reaction on the latest deal. president obama behind the bipartisan senate plan, that gang of six deal that we've been talking about so far today. congressman sanchez, will you

support this gang of six plan? >> well, we still have to look at the real details. i mean there's some very difficult pieces in there. i mean there's some easier pieces. it freezes, for example, our congressional salaries. okay, well, that's something that people i think can live with. but the more important thing is what pieces of medicare or medicaid get cut, which is what they have got on there. they have a constitutional amendment with respect to revenue raising that would require two-thirds of a vote. that's very difficult. i come from the state of california. our voters actually just voted on referendum and approved not having a super majority for those types of votes. so we've lived under for the last 20 years something that has really wrecked our government in our state and the people of california have realized you can't put in these artificial types of things because then nothing gets done. >> congresswoman, this is what harry reid said on the senate

floor just moments ago. take a listen to what he said. >> i had a terrific conversation with the president last night. until we hear from the house of representatives, really our -- all of our work here wouldn't be no naught. >> they're talking about the plan and how the house will receive it. you said you may support this. in the end, this plan may not be ready in time, so what are some of the options you think? >> well, you know, it's really about these house republicans. i mean speaker boehner is a guy who understands we're here to get things done. and i have worked under him when he was, for example, the chairman of the education and labor committee. and he was willing to come to the table and understand that everything is a compromise and everything is negotiable and i think the president has plenty of things on there and democrats are willing to listen to see what type of a deal we can get out of the senate. but it's really these new freshmen house republicans who are catering to about 15 or 18%

of the american public, some of who don't understand some of these implications. as i suggested in california, that two-thirds requirement we just eliminated by the voters. and so we really need to see what speaker boehner can do with the house republicans. and i think that's what harry reid was alluding to. what are the other options? of course mitch mcconnell has something out there which may not be palatable to people but at least he's trying to think out of the box and put something out there. we all need to think out of the box and think of how we're going to move this forward, because people have to understand, if you've been trying to sell your home and we default on our debt this august, it's going to be more difficult to sell your home. if you've got credit card rates that you think are too high now, it may be more difficult to pay off those debts. so this will affect every single person. >> it is real, absolutely real. >> across the states. >> and we have 13 days to get it done. congresswoman loretta sanchez,

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addressed this right away. what is she saying? >> one of the things i found so interesting is there have been other controversies that have hit her campaign, that comes with the territory, and at times she's avoided talking about it, refused to talk about it. but when it came to her health, she wanted to respond right away. >> don't give up. >> reporter: this time the questions have nothing to do with her politics. >> the prescribed medication that i take on occasion whenever symptoms arise and they keep my migraines under control. >> reporter: a report on michele bachmann's struggle with migraines is a political headache on the campaign trail. >> but i'd like to be abundantly clear. my ability to function effectively will not affect -- will not affect my ability to serve as commander in chief. >> reporter: in south carolina on tuesday -- >> this is a bold step. >> reporter: bachman took questions about that report, saying her migraines can be, quote, incapacitating. a conservative website, the

daily caller, based its story on accounts from anonymous former bachman aides, jonathan strong. >> the headaches have resulted her going to the hospital at least three times that we know of. in one case she missed congressional votes. >> reporter: bachman chose to take this head on, insisting they do not harm her candidacy. >> since entering this campaign for the presidency, i have maintained a full schedule. >> reporter: strong said his unnamed sources have their own political agenda. >> these are republicans who worry that barack obama could skate away with re-election if this blew up during the general election campaign. >> reporter: campaigning last summer, bachman's hometown paper reported that she cancelled an event and was hospitalized briefly with an undisclosed illness. tuesday bachman tried to offer an upbeat spin making this about public education, rather than damage control. >> the many questions i have received on this subject have allowed me to discuss this important condition that impacts

many americans and individuals and nearly one in four american households. >> reporter: doctors say migraines are common and treatable with medication, but can be brought on by stress. >> the body is telling you you need sleep or needing to eat or needing to reduce the stress levels. >> reporter: and that's where the politics comes in. >> it goes to the heart of the question of her ability to serve. and her condition may not be a problem or it may be a big problem. that's why she has to come clean. >> reporter: and i reached out to former bachman aides who would not talk about this, so people will have to evaluate what they think is the truth here, is that as extreme as some of these anonymous former staffers claim, is it more like what the congresswoman projected saying that it's something that's very manageable. now, health always comes into play when you talk about presidential politics. there's been a history of some candidates in times past who have hid illnesses and so it's brought out this kind of demand for more information.

and usually when you get to the general election, people are required to sort of put out their medical records, talk about their history. we've seen candidates who survived cancer who have run. all of that kind of thing. what's unusual here, richard, is that it's happening so early and bachman in a bit of an uncharacteristic way, she came out, she wanted to talk about it and she says it is not going to affect her. of course, she's keeping a very busy schedule and now people will watch that to see if she's ever absent on the campaign trail, if they see any hint of this t being a problem. richard. >> kelly o'donnell, thank you. an end to the nfl lockout. a car chase with a taser finale and just how hot will it get in your area today? the stories people are talking about next. es. in here, the planned combination of at&t and t-mobile would deliver our next generation mobile broadband experience to 55 million more americans, many in small towns and rural communities, giving them a new choice. we'll deliver better service, with thousands of new cell sites...

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deep heat all across the country. many states across the great union facing triple digit numbers right now. it's dangerous, stay inside, go to those cooling centers. we'll continue to watch those heat indices for you right here on msnbc.

here's a look at some other stories that people are talking about right now. this morning officials in yosemite national park will resume their search for three people believed to be swept away in the vernal water fall. this year's record snowfall has led to particularly high waters. a crazy police chase in mesa, arizona. during the 30-mile chase the minivan blew out a tire but kept on going. finally it pulled over and police got the driver and passenger up. as the pass passenger backed up towards police, they tased him. arizona is asking people to help build a fence by sending money. people can make donations to build a fence along the border with mexico. the initial goal is to raise $50 million. there are so many people who want to get hitched on the first day new york allows gay marriage, the city will hold a

lottery. officials will make 764 marriage licenses available for couples to marry on sunday. at least 400 entered the lottery on its first day. you can register through tomorrow. an end may be near to the nfl's first lockout since 1987, but the deal reportedly is not done yet. both sides, though, are preparing to vote on a proposed deal once it's finalized. player reps from all 32 teams are scheduled to be at the union's headquarters today. owners will meet tomorrow. the space shuttle "atlantis" is ready for its final return to florida tomorrow. the crew has tested its flight systems and is aiming for a touchdown just before dawn on thursday. this will be the final mission for nasa's 30-year space shuttle program. and speaking of energy from the skies, we'll show you one of the more interesting places to use solar power when we go "down to the wire" in just about 20. this afternoon first lady michelle obama announces her latest move to fight childhood obesity. major supermarkets have agreed

to expand their fresh fruit offerings to lorin come locations where people have few healthy options. it's these areas where tightening budgets have resulted in the loosening of belts. that's because cheap, fast and often more fattier meals win over healthier, more expensive options. first at risk here, the unemploy unemployed. teenagers, one out of four of them without jobs. african-americans, one out of six with no jobs says the latest employment data. hispanics and latinos, one out of nine looking for a paycheck today. vegetable intake is also in decline. the latest healthy behaviors index shows four and a half million people are eating more poorly. the young and the old have seen the greatest drop in healthy greens eating, right out of college or in retirement. both areas -- both times when checking accounts are tight, which makes fast food not only a real option but a necessary option. like taco bell's 99-cent burrito

supreme, 420 calories. quiz know's has a buy one, get one subpromotion that's up to 480 calories or more for one sub. and domino's has a $5 peas izza deal. so eatingwell.com does list healthy meals for $3 in 30 minutes for less. chicken dinners, ground beef dinners and ethnic healthy dinners. they take 30 minutes, not including shopping and cleaning to prepare. significant to people where every extra hour of work counts. just when you think that apple cannot outdo itself, it does. fueled by off the chart sales of the almighty iphone, apple has reportedly had its best quarter ever, more than doubling its profit. doubling. nicole lapin is here. it is amazing. you're looking at what's moving our money today. every single time they come out with a report, i'm like stand back further.

>> that's what apple does all the time. they always lowball wall street and then blow it out of the park. 26 -- 28.6 billion dollars. that is $3.5 billion higher than analysts' expectations. this is huge in wall street terms. and you're talking about the almighty iphone. more than 20 million iphones sold. nine million ipads. they said they couldn't even make as many as people wanted. they sold every single one that they could make. >> they make so much money on each one of these iphones, it's no doubt. something like $600 versus what the normal market where a phone goes for $90. >> it's staggering. >> tell me about, though, people looking at the ceo search. what do you know about that? there's some word there's some action happening. >> i think steve jobs came out and said that's hog wash but he typically comes out with blatant statements like that. whether it's sustainable beyond the steve jobs effect is a big question, so if he goes can the stock price remain where it is. i say yes, because look at how

much cash they have on hand. $76 billion. they have enough money -- >> what? >> they have enough money to buy visa altogether. they have enough money to buy u.p.s., s.a.p. or 3-m. >> home sales? >> existing home sales much weaker than expected. what's concerning me most is that home buyers, first-time home buyers are falling to record lows right now so we're seeing a lot of the weakness in the condo market and co-op market specifically. i will say one silver lining here, we're not seeing the six million homes that we need to sustain a healthy recovery. yesterday's pending home sales were a little stronger than expected and those tend to lead existing home sales so we could see a pop back in a few months. >> fantastic as always. cnbc's nicole lapin, thank you very much. she hates apple, i know she does. >> no, you do. millions of people in the united states and in britain watching the grilling of rupert murdoch yesterday, but when the testimony was interrupted by a protester with a cream pie, all eyes turned to the woman in pink

who instantly got up and punched the protester open-handed, bam. the woman was none other than rupert murdoch's wife, wend wendi deng. >> reporter: she had her husband's back from the beginning. at times leaning forward as if willing rupert murdoch on. and when it counted, leaping forward. young, athletic, a former volleyball player in high school, aggressively protecting her 80-year-old husband from the pie-throwing attacker. >> watching him so carefully that she was the first to be able to get up and before anyone else, swat away this aggressor. >> reporter: she is rupert murdoch's glamorous chinese-born third wife, widely viewed as a huge asset to his businesses in china and in social and charitable circles here in the u.s. now she is a celebrity among celebrities, a standout even among political and business elite. 38 years younger than the media baron, she first met him when she was a young executive.

now married for 12 years, the union was at first controversial. rupert murdoch's 102-year-old mother once called her new daughter-in-law a designing woman, especially when she challenged his adult children. fighting so that her two young daughters with murdoch would also get a stake in the company. >> we try to combine the best of chinese and the best of american method to teach them. >> reporter: and there is her history. coming to the u.s. on a student visa, then marrying her first husband, a man who with his wife had sponsored wendi, as first reported in the "wall street journal." >> wendi who was a teenager at the time had an affair with the father of her sort of adopted father, and the two of them ended up getting married for long enough for her to get a green card. >> reporter: only last week she released a movie she's produced for her husband's 20th century

fox. >> she's a powerful advocate for her husband, for his interests and for herself. >> reporter: a powerful defender of her husband. >> mr. murdoch, your wife has a very good left hook. >> reporter: as the whole world has new seen. >> nbc's andrea mitchell. you can catch her at 1:00 eastern right here on msnbc. by the way, that sucker punch has made wendi very popular in the social media. bloggers are calling her smackdown sister. with less than two weeks until teachers were supposed to return to work, memphis city school board members voted to delay the start of the school year indefinitely. board members wanting the city to pay the big chunk of the money it owes for the fiscal year first. until they do, school is being held hostage. >> we might be talking about giving up the whole year, y'all. if we're serious. >> they need to be in school. i can't say that passionately or

emphatically enough. and so i'm going to keep fighting to get a resolution to this matter with the parties that need to be involved. we have to have it now. it's an urgent matter. >> what do you think about that story? we want to know about what your thoughts are on that as well as the other stories that we're covering. you can find it as facebook.com/jansingco. finally, there's a choice for my patients with an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation, or afib, that's not caused by a heart valve problem. today we have pradaxa to reduce the risk of a stroke caused by a clot. in a clinical trial, pradaxa 150 mg reduced stroke risk 35% more than warfarin. and with pradaxa, there's no need for those regular blood tests.

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insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. is now honey nut cheerios! yup, america's favorite. so we're celebrating the honey sweetness, crunchy oats and... hey! don't forget me!! honey nut cheerios. make it your favorite too! having more access to fast food restaurants increases the chance you'll eat it. looking at the diets of 5,000 adults and where they lived led researchers at the university of north carolina chapel hill to a link between low income levels and fast food consumption, especially among those who lived closer to fast food restaurants. good morning, everybody. can the gang of six plus one

ride in and save the day on the debt ceiling default dilemma? and what can washington politicians learn from state governors who have balanced budgets. vermont's governor will join me to talk about that. also same-sex marriages legally start this sunday in new york. you'll meet one high-profile couple who will be one of the first to tie the knot. on the flip side, a look at all of the people who have recently gotten a pie in the face or even a glitter attack, something new. we'll have all that for you at the top of the hour. we'll get you in the loop. but for now we send it back to richard lui. thank you, thomas. anyone with a loved one serving overseas knows the heart ache caused bicep rags but -- by separation. we have sergeant denise king and corporal joshua king. good morning to you both. we have a five-second delay, i believe, because of the distance. i just want to let our viewers know that.

let me start by asking you this, sergeant. how is life serving together in the military at the same location? >> i think both of us being in the marine corps, it's awesome that we have somebody else to understand what we're going through. >> and corporal, you're not only newlyweds, you're also new parents. and as we think about that, are you concerned at all here about not having one of you, one of the parents back home with your son? >> you know, when we were deciding to both come out here, we had thought about that and it was a really hard decision to make. but he spends half his time with my family and half his time with her family. they love him to death. they probably love him more than they love us, so we know he's in good hands. >> sergeant, when is the last time that you spoke, shall i

say, with your son over the phone or you saw him through skype in some manner? >> we were able to talk to him this morning. i talk to him every day. and we're able to skype him once in a while. >> as he's growing in front of your eyes, at least over the internet. let me ask you, corporal, how often do you see each other? how do you see each other, the two of you? i'm talking about you and your wife? >> we work a little bit different shifts, but we get about eight hours a day when we're both at work. granted we are actually doing work, but we get to see each other from time to time. and then off duty pt together, we go on runs, we try to eat chow together at least once a day so we get to see each other a fair amount and it's really a blessing. >> sergeant, it sounds like the two of you are really making this work. would you say the fact that you work together and serve together in afghanistan is actually a better situation than if one of you had stayed back because you

would live difficult lives and separate lives? >> i didn't hear the question. >> so what i'm asking, sergeant -- >> i'm sorry, what was the question? >> no problem. i know there's a delay here. the fact that you guys get to work together and spend time together, it sounds like it's working out quite well compared to many of those who serve with you where one of them is in the united states. >> yes, it's great having him out here. i know most of us -- well, almost everybody has to leave their loved ones behind, but it's great to see him every day here and be able to talk to him as much as we do. >> sergeant and corporal, thank you very much for what you do there. thank you for your time today and sharing with us how you've made it work serving together there in afghanistan, which is so important to all of us here in the united states. thank you again for your time.

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breaking news. minnesota is back in business within the hour. that state's governor signed a new budget that ends the nation's longest state government shutdown in the past decade. the government had been shut down since july 1st laying off 22,000 workers, closing state parks and stopping road projects in the process. solar porta potty, extreme eats and a casey anthony dunk tank. let's go down to the wire and start the clock. first off, using porta potties is always scary, even scarier in the dark. a new invention may change that. a couple in tennessee unveiling solar powered lighting. the small roof light charges

during the day and lights up the porta potty at night. the capitals food police revealed some of the fattiest foods. while they might taste good they are really, really bad for you. the worst is coldstone creamery's pb and c shake. cheesecake factory's farmhouse cheeseburger and denny's cheese melt. hold on, of the restaurants who do post their calories online, a new study showing they're not always right, sometimes underestimating calories in food like soup and salad. a casey anthony dunking booth at the lexington fair had to be shut down. it had a big picture of casey and the words guilty and not guilty on the sides. they hoped it would be a fun way to get out anxiety over the trial. turns out people just got more angry. picture this, you're a f fly -- you're a little kid and a fly ball is headed right at you except the lady in front of you gets it.

check out the little boy in the gray sweatshirt. looks like his dad tries to explain, hey, it's okay, but it was not getting through, that message wasn't. eventually a park employee went over and gave him a ball of his own. how could that lady do that. this may be the video of the day for you. this car in montreal lifted off the sidewalk by a giant spray of water, and it just kept on going and going, like old faithful. good thing that car was parked and no one was inside. that wraps this hour up for us. i'm richard lui in for chris jansing. thomas roberts is up next with a lot more. stick around. host: do people use smartphones to do dumb things? man 1: send, that is the weekend. app grapgic: yeah dawg! man 2: allow me to crack...the bubbly! man 1: don't mind if i doozy. man 3: is a gentleman with a brostache invited over to this party? man 1: only if he's ready to rock! ♪ sfx: guitar and trumpet jam vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance.

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gang of six to the rescue. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle rally around a new plan to save the nation from default just 13 days from d-day. >> what the public expects is not petty political point scoring. >> the british prime minister, a

defiant speech in parliament. can he survive the ever-growing hacking scandal that's threatening rupert murdoch's empire. and she swung into action to save her husband from the pie-throwing protester. now everybody wants to know who is wendi murdoch. and millions are looking for a way to stay cool and when will it end. we'll have all of that for you. i'm thomas roberts and we start on a very business wednesday morning with what's taking place in washington, d.c., and president obama saying he is ready to talk turkey with leadership and close a deal on debt and the debt ceiling. the stakes couldn't be any higher. the big break through tuesday came from the bipartisan gang of six. dozens of democratic and republican senators gave their $3.7 trillion debt package rave reviews. the president praised the balanced approach in the briefing room. >> i want to congratulate the gang of six for coming up with a plan